GUIA DE ISORA/STARNBERG, February 25, 2024
Matteo Gigante was crowned champion of the Tenerife Challenger 2. The No. 5 seed of the ATP Challenger Tour 75 hard-court event held at the Abama Tennis Academy in Guia de Isora, defeated fellow Italian Stefano Travaglia 6-2, 6-4 in Sunday’s singles final.
Gigante struck five aces and won 65 per cent of his first-service points to seal victory in one hour and 24 minutes.
He did it again ⭐️
Matteo Gigante 🇮🇹 wins the Tenerife Challenger 2 by defeating Stefano Travaglia 6-2 6-4 🏆#tennis #TenerifeChallenger #VisitTenerife #Tenerife #AwakenEmotions #CanaryIslands pic.twitter.com/Lrvd6EZMPe
— MEF tennis events (@meftennisevents) February 25, 2024
“In important moments, I had a little extra something, and that helped me,” said Gigante.
The World No. 183, who also won one of the three Tenerife Challengers last year, captured his fourth ATP Challenger Tour career title, his first of the season. The 22-year-old Rome native pocketed €10,200 in prize money as well as 75 ATP Ranking points, which will bring Gigante close to the Top 150, just a few positions behind his best ranking of World No. 155
However, his thoughts are not on the ranking but on the growth path undertaken with the new coach Marco Gulisano. “It’s not just this week that I’ve improved my attitude, but it’s something we’ve been working on since mid-December. When we started, Marco told me he didn’t care about tennis, he knew I could play well, what he wanted was for me to improve the way I conducted myself on the court.”
Asked about his goals, Gigante responded: “I don’t want to get too ahead of myself, but I work to grow. Everyone has their own pace, and I am calm. Now after a day of rest, there will be Tenerife 3, and so far, the week after a title, I have never won the next match, so I want to try here.”
Main draw action of the Tenerife Challenger 3 starts on Monday.
